Assiniboine Park Conservancy

Founded in 2008, the Assiniboine Park Conservancy is a not-for-profit organization responsible for the operation of Winnipeg’s historic Assiniboine Park.

The Assiniboine Park Conservancy (APC) is also responsible for establishing the future vision for the Park and Zoo and carrying out this transformation while protecting the Park’s cherished character and ensuring its long-term financial viability. APC has a 50-year lease with the City of Winnipeg, which owns the property and assets.

In 2009, APC unveiled a visionary redevelopment plan for the entire Park designed to help the organization meet its long-term goals and objectives. The redevelopment is supported by theImagine a PlaceCampaign. In just a few short years, with the support of the private and public sectors, APC has added tremendous value to this cherished community asset and popular tourist attraction.

APC is governed by a Board of Directors comprised of community leaders whose affection for Assiniboine Park translates into a deep sense of responsibility to our stakeholders. They provide leadership, valuable guidance, and essential connections to the communities we serve. The Board of Directors includes representation from the City of Winnipeg and Province of Manitoba as well as accomplished and respected leaders in our business, philanthropic, post-secondary and Indigenous communities.

Our Vision: Assiniboine Park is a place where people share the wonders of nature in a way that inspires them to conserve it for the future.

For more information, please contact:

Board of Directors

Hartley T. Richardson, O.C., O.M., LL.D., is the seventh family President of James Richardson & Sons, Limited, a private, family-owned corporation, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Winnipeg, Canada. The company has interests in agriculture and food processing, energy, real estate and financial services.

James Richardson & Sons, Limited has over 158 years of experience in Canadian agriculture and specifically the international grain distribution industry. Its wholly-owned subsidiary, Richardson International Limited, operates the largest privately-owned network of grain facilities in Canada.

Tundra Oil & Gas Limited is involved in oil exploration and production in Canada’s Williston Basin, where it owns and operates over 2,000 wells and related pipeline infrastructure. Real estate interests controlled through Richardson Centre Limited are currently concentrated in the ownership and management of office towers in Winnipeg, and have included a variety of commercial, industrial and resort ventures across North America in the past.

Other businesses include subsidiaries in private equity and financial services. Richardson Capital Limited is the company’s private equity arm, investing in Canadian companies in a range of industry sectors outside of the Firm’s core business. Another entity, Richardson GMP Limited, is responsible for providing personalized family wealth management services and advice.

Mr. Richardson serves as a Director of KingSett Canadian Real Estate Income Fund Advisory Board. He is a Director and Past-Chairman of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives and Past-Chairman of the Business Council of Manitoba. In addition, Mr. Richardson is Chairman of Assiniboine Park Conservancy, Co-Chairman of TransCanada Trail Foundation, Chairman of the Board of Governors for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Charter for Business, member of the Me to We Member Advisory Management Committee, and Chairman of the Advisory Committee for Telefilm Canada’s Private Donation Fund. Other affiliations include the World Economic Forum Global Leaders of Tomorrow and the Intercontinental Chapter of Young President’s Organization. He is also actively involved in a number of charitable endeavours and community organizations. Mr. Richardson received an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from each of the University of Manitoba in 2004 and the University of Winnipeg in 2012. He was also appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in 2007, promoted to an Officer within the Order of Canada in 2013, and was appointed to the Order of Manitoba in 2008.

Don Streuber, FCA, is the Executive Chairman of Bison Transport Inc., an award winning truckload transportation provider throughout Canada and the United States. Don is a Chartered Accountant and has a Bachelor of Commerce, with honors in finance, from the University of Manitoba.

Don is a director and chair of the audit committee of Exchange Income Corporation a TSX listed company.

Don is Chair of the Canadian Trucking Alliance, Vice Chair the Assiniboine Park Conservancy, Chair of CentrePort Canada, governor and Past Chair of Providence University College and Seminary, member and Past Chair of the Business Council of Manitoba, and a member of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives.

Jim August played a leadership role in economic and community development over his 30-plus year career. Jim recently retired as CEO of The Forks North Portage Partnership following fifteen years in the position. Under his leadership, a comprehensive long-term mixed-use development strategy was created including the development of a new hotel and parking structure, innovative programming at The Forks, a twenty year waterfront plan and numerous community-driven initiatives.

Jim has served on numerous boards and councils over the years, including United Way Winnipeg, Chair of Prairie Theatre Exchange, Economic Development Winnipeg, Waterfront (Washington, D.C.) and the Premier’s Economic Advisory Council. He is currently Chair of the Winnipeg Arts Council and Co-Chair of the University of Winnipeg Community Renewal Corporation.

Lloyd Axworthy (University of Winnipeg), President and Vice-Chancellor of The University of Winnipeg, graduated in 1961 with a BA from United College (now The University of Winnipeg), and received an MA and PhD from Princeton in 1963 and 1972 respectively.

At The University of Winnipeg, Dr. Axworthy is working to renew the campus and its downtown community with the view to making post-secondary education more accessible to inner-city, Aboriginal and New Canadian students. He is also expanding the University’s outreach in the areas of Aboriginal education, environmental studies, and human rights.

Dr. Axworthy’s political career spanned 27 years, during six of which he served in the Manitoba Legislative Assembly and twenty-one in the Federal Parliament. He held several Cabinet positions, notably Minister of Employment and Immigration, Minister Responsible for the Status of Women, Minister of Transport, Minister of Human Resources Development, Minister of Western Economic Diversification and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1996-2000. Upon leaving public office, Dr. Axworthy served as Director and CEO of the Liu Institute for Global Issues at the University of British Colombia prior to his appointment at The University of Winnipeg.

In the Foreign Affairs portfolio, Dr. Axworthy became internationally known for his advancement of the human security concept, in particular, the Ottawa Treaty - a landmark global treaty banning anti-personnel landmines. For his leadership on landmines, he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. For his efforts in establishing the International Criminal Court and the Protocol on child soldiers, he received the North-South Prize of the Council of Europe.

Since leaving public life in the fall of 2000, Dr. Axworthy has been the recipient of several prestigious awards and honours. The Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation presented him with the Senator Patrick J. Leahy Award in recognition of his leadership in the global effort to outlaw landmines, to ban the use of children as soldiers, and to bring war criminals to justice. Princeton University awarded him the Madison Medal for his record of outstanding public service, he received the CARE International Humanitarian Award, and he was elected Honorary Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Axworthy has been named to Order of Manitoba and to the Order of Canada and has received honorary doctorates from 12 universities.

In 2004, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan appointed Lloyd Axworthy as his special envoy for Ethiopia-Eritrea to assist in implementing a peace agreement between the East African countries. In 2006, the Organization of American States appointed him to lead the OAS Electoral Observation Mission that monitored the 2006 general elections in Peru. He recently served as a member of the UNDP Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor which released its report, Making the Law Work for Everyone, in 2008.

Dr. Axworthy currently serves as a commissioner on the Aspen Institute's Dialogue and Commission on Arctic Climate Change. He is a Board member of the MacArthur Foundation, Human Rights Watch, the Educational Policy Institute, and the University of the Arctic, among others.

Lloyd Axworthy remains involved in international matters and lectures widely in Canada, the US and abroad. His book Navigating a New World - Canada’s Global Future, Knopf Canada, was published in the Fall of 2003.

Greg Doyle attended the University of Manitoba and received his Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Commence and became a member of the Institute of the Chartered Accounts of Manitoba.

After graduation, he joined Peat Marwick Mitchell & Co. (now KPMG) in Winnipeg. And was admitted to partnership in 1982 and was the Managing Partner in Winnipeg from 1984 till 1996.

Greg transferred to KPMG in Warsaw in 1996 and assumed the role of Senior Partner of the Polish practice. While in Poland he was mainly involved with the audits of international banks and other major foreign investors in Poland. I also served on the Board of KPMG Europe and the Board and Executive Committee of KPMG Central and Eastern Europe. Greg retired from KPMG at the end of 2002 and returned to Winnipeg in 2003. He is married with three children and enjoys golf, the arts, and traveling.

Since retiring he has accepted appointments to several Boards, both corporate and non-profit.

David Johnston (The Johnston Group Inc.) is the President and owner of Johnston Group Inc., a Winnipeg based administrator of group insurance benefits. Johnston Group administers benefits for over 27,000 Canadian companies. In addition Johnston Group is also a partner in Payworks Inc. a Winnipeg based payroll service provider that was launched in 2001. Johnston Group employs 180 people across the country with 150 of these in Winnipeg.

In 2001 Johnston Group was named as one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Private companies and has been awarded that designation for the past 8 years, now been named a member of their Platinum Club. Johnston Group is very active in the community with on going major support to virtually every major organization. Johnston Group is one of the United Way top 50 campaigns for both employee and employer participation and was awarded United Way’s 2003 and 2008 Campaign Chair’s award.

Mr. Johnston has been personally involved with many aspects of the community and served on a number of boards. He was president of the Children’s Hospital of Winnipeg Foundation for 3 years, a founding Director of the Foundations for Health campaign for what is now the John Buhler Research Center, a board member of the Business Council of Manitoba and the Campaign Chair for the 2001 United Way of Winnipeg Campaign. He currently is a member of the board of Arts Stabilization Manitoba and the board of the Assiniboine Park Conservancy.

Councillor Mike Pagtakhan immigrated from the Philippines at the age of 3, and has lived in Winnipeg, Manitoba for 43 years.

The Councillor graduated from the University of Manitoba with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Native Studies in 1991. In 2002, he attained his Certified Professional Purchaser designation from the Purchasing Management Association of Canada, as well as his Certified in Management Diploma from the Canadian Institute of Management.

First elected as City of Winnipeg Councillor in October 2002, and subsequently re-elected, Councillor Mike Pagtakhan is now serving his fourth term as City Councillor for the Point Douglas Ward. Mayor Brian Bowman has appointed Councillor Pagtakhan to serve on the Executive Policy Committee and as Chairperson to the Standing Policy Committee on Protection, Community Services and Parks.

Councillor Pagtakhan is married to his wife, Minas, and together they have three children. In his spare time the Councillor enjoys spending quality time with his family and creating wood fired pottery, utilitarian pottery, painting and gardening at his hobby farm.

Douglas E. Pollard is the Co-CEO of Pollard Banknote Limited, a Winnipeg-based supplier to the global lottery industry, employing over 1,600 people, of which 800 are based in Winnipeg.

Pollard Banknote has been managed by the Pollard family since its founding in 1907. It is currently 67% owned by the Pollard family and 33% publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Pollard Banknote is the second-largest producer of scratch and win lottery tickets in the world and, under Mr. Pollard’s leadership, has been taking a leading role in helping lotteries sell their products via mobile and internet channels, while continuing to grow sales of printed products at retail.

Mr. Pollard is a Past Chair of FortWhyte Alive. He has served on the Campaign Cabinet of the United Way of Winnipeg. He is currently a member of the board of CancerCare Manitoba Foundation and the board of the Assiniboine Park Conservancy. He has a BA from the University of Manitoba, an MBA from the University of Western Ontario, and is fluent in French and Spanish.

Diane Redsky is a nationally renowned visionary thinker and community leader who has long worked to address the myriad of issues facing Winnipeg’s urban Aboriginal community in all areas of health, justice, education and social services. Since 1993, she has served in both a professional and volunteer capacity working within the social services sector and has become a strong advocate for aboriginal, children’s and women’s issues. She has helped to create numerous innovative programs that have helped build healthy communities. She believes in a shared value and culturally appropriate approach and possesses clear vision to detail. Diane’s belief in the inherent strength of the community continues to guide her along her life’s journey.

“I believe that everyone has gifts and strengths to share that will enable us to work together for healthy families and healthy communities.”

For the past several years, Diane has been instrumental in the development of resources for sexually exploited youth in Manitoba including a safe house and rural healing lodge. She is currently working with the Canadian Women’s Foundation as the Project Director for the Task Force on Human Trafficking of Women and Girls in Canada and Grand Council Treaty #3 Women’s Executive Council to develop a strategy in First Nation communities to address the human trafficking of women and girls between Manitoba and Ontario.

Following a lengthy career in the retail industry, Harvey returned to university in 1988, graduating with the Gold Medal in Law in 1992. He then spent two years at Harvard Law School receiving his LL.M. and working with the Program on Negotiation. In June 2009, he retired from the University of Manitoba where he had spent 10 years as a Professor of Negotiation and Dispute Resolution and Dean of the Faculty of Law; he continues his practice in mediation and arbitration and serves as a corporate director.

In addition to APC, Harvey is Past President of the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba and a current member of the Premier’s Economic Advisory Council, the Board of the Health Sciences Centre Foundation, and the United Way Advisory Committee. In the past, he has served as Chair of the Board of Regents of the University of Winnipeg, Chair of the United Way Campaign, Chair of the Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation, a Bencher of the Law Society of Manitoba, a Trustee of the Law Foundation of Manitoba and on the boards of a number of corporate, professional and philanthropic organizations.
Harvey received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Winnipeg, the Sol Kanee Distinguished Community Service Award, and, with his wife, Sandra, the Negev Award.

Mike Stevens is a Partner with The Exchange Chartered Accountants and President of The Exchange Solutions Inc., a consulting and technology firm. Mike is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Manitoba, and has been practicing in the industry in both private and public sectors for many years.

Mike Stevens holds a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Economics from the University of Manitoba, he graduated in 1981.

Mike currently volunteers on the board of United Way 2008 Capital Campaign, Assiniboine Park Governance and Nominating Committee, Manitoba Zoological Society of Manitoba, and the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce Finance Committee.

Chantal Sturk-Nadeau leads tourism development as Senior Vice President for Tourism Winnipeg and has been an integral member of the team for 16 years. In this time, she has put her experience and passion for Winnipeg to work by spearheading major projects and campaigns, driving sales & marketing efforts, acting as an industry liaison and advocate, and collaborating with key stakeholders. Prior to joining Tourism Winnipeg, Chantal’s extensive experience in sales and marketing included: International Sales with Nygard International and International Marketing Director for DBC Productions. Chantal holds an Arts Degree from the University of Manitoba, an Advanced Diploma in International Business and has received the Certified Destination Marketing Executive from Purdue University.

Paul Vogt is in his second year as Red River College’s President and CEO.

Vogt is leading at an exciting time of growth and transformation at the College, which is poised to open its new $67-million Skilled Trades and Technology Centre in 2018 and will be moving forward on a major expansion of its Exchange District Campus.

These exciting new initiatives are part of Vogt’s overall vision for the College – a modern, agile post-secondary institution that supports student success, provides leadership in teaching excellence and innovation, and works in partnership with industry and the community for the benefit of our province.

Prior to coming to the College, Vogt held several leadership roles in education and public administration.

An award-winning alumnus of the Universities of Manitoba, Oxford and Princeton, Vogt began his teaching career at the University of Manitoba, and has also taught at the University of Winnipeg and Canadian Mennonite University.

From 1996 to 2014 Vogt held a number of positions with the Manitoba Government, including eight years as the head of the provincial public service and Deputy Minister to the Premier.

He has served also on many volunteer boards in Manitoba including current positions on the United Way Cabinet, the Fort Whyte Foundation, the Winnipeg Airports Authority and the Assiniboine Park Conservancy.